Ex-Egypt president Mubarak ‘not in Sharjah’, says UAE

Media speculation that a plane carrying ousted Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak landed in Sharjah on Sunday has been rebuffed by the emirate’s Department of Civil Aviation.

The UAE’s state-run news agency confirmed that the former president, whose 30-year-rule of Egypt ended on Friday night, was not in Sharjah.

There is no shortage of speculation as to Mubarak’s whereabouts. The 82-year-old fled with his family to Egypt’s Red Sea resort city of Sharm El Sheikh just hours before stepping down, but his next move is unknown.

In his last address to the nation last Thursday, Mubarak pledged to “die on the soil of Egypt.

Theodore Karasik, from the Institute for Near East and Gulf Military Analysis in Dubai, told Arabian Business there was still a good chance Mubarak could flee to the UAE.

“There is a 50 percent chance he would come here,” he said. “In the past, [the UAE] has been where exiles or leaders who are exiled from their countries come because it is known as a place where politics do not occur. It maintains security and stability.